Young engineers from Coronado High School will go to Denver University next month to find out if they've built a better robot than 47 teams from other schools
around the state.
Nicknamed “Cougars Gone Wired,” the 37-member Coronado group has been preparing for the 2009 First Robotics Competition as an extracurricular activity for
the past few months.
FIRST is a worldwide robotics competition that seeks to support young people in becoming scientists and engineers.
Each team will have built and programmed a robot weighing more than 100 pounds. In the competition March 26-28 at Denver University, robots can score points by
placing different sizes and shapes of balls into trailers towed by opponent robots. Simulating low-friction settings, such as on the moon, the game is played on a very
slick surface with mandatory wheels that are similarly slick to minimize friction and simulate the effects of microgravity.
This is the first time Coronado has entered the annual event, according to school engineering instructor Bryce McLean. “This competition is really a perfect match for
our strong engineering program at Coronado,” he said.
Cougars Gone Wired is sponsored by NASA, Aeroflex, IEEE, Vertec, and Colorado Springs School District 11.